This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognizing you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting. We do not share any your subscription information with third parties. It is used solely to send you notifications about site content occasionally.

Share This

The National Cancer Institute estimates that 226,870
women will be diagnosed with and 39,510 women
will die of breast cancer in 2012. NCI also report that
12.38 percent of women born today (one in eight
women) will be diagnosed with breast cancer some
time during their lifetime1 Yet despite these seemingly grim statistics,
there are many treatment options, which have brought
new hope in the fight against this disease. In fact, according to
Breastcancer.org2 these treatments include:

Surgery (lumpectomy, mastectomy, and lymph node dissection)

Chemotherapy

Radiation therapy

Hormonal therapy

Targeted therapies (Herceptin, Tykerb, Avastin, Perjeta, Afinitor)

Complementary medicine

Drugs for treatment and risk reduction

This article will focus of the use of integrative medicine in the
treatment and prevention of breast cancer. More specifically, it
will focus on coenzyme Q10, soy isoflavones, indole-3-carbinol
and DIM, laughter, folic acid and dietary fiber as complementary
medicine therapies. Diet in general also plays an important role,
and there are other viable complementary therapies as well.
However, due to space limitations this article will not address
diet (with the exception of fiber) and those other therapies.

Coenzyme Q10
Biochemical, biomedical and clinical research on coenzyme
Q10 (CoQ10) and its relationship to treating cancer has evolved
internationally over 35 years. Some interesting research published
in a scientific journal in 1995 discussed three specific breast cancer patients who underwent a conventional protocol
of therapy, which included 390 mg of CoQ10. In one 44-year-old
patient, the numerous liver metastases “disappeared,” and no
signs of metastases were found elsewhere. Another 49-year-old
patient revealed no signs of tumor in the pleural cavity after six
months, and her condition was excellent. A 75-year-old patient
with carcinoma in one breast showed no cancer in the tumor
bed or metastases after lumpectomy and 390 mg of CoQ10
daily.3

Of course it’s great to quote a few isolated cases where
breast cancer patients responded well to CoQ10 therapy, but
have there been positive results when CoQ10 was given to
larger groups of patients? As a matter of fact, yes. Thirty-two
typical patients with breast cancer, aged 32–81 years and classified
‘high risk’ because of tumor spread to lymph nodes, where
studied for 18 months following the administration of a special
dietary supplement program. The supplement program included
a combination of antioxidants including vitamin C, vitamin
E, beta-carotene, selenium, essential fatty acids, and 90 mg of
CoQ10 daily. The results of the study were: 1) none of the patients
died during the study period (the expected number was
four); 2) none of the patients showed signs of further distant
metastases; 3) quality of life was improved (no weight loss, reduced
use of pain killers); 4) six patients showed apparent partial
remission.4

Interestingly, in a subsequent follow-up study, one of the
aforementioned six patients who showed partial remission had
her dose increased to 390 mg daily. In one month, the tumor
was no longer palpable, and in another month, mammography
confirmed the absence of tumor. Another patient who had nonradical
surgery still had residual tumor in the tumor bed. She
was treated with 300 mg of CoQ10, and in three months was
in excellent clinical condition and there was not residual tumor
tissue.5

Soy and its isoflavones
One of the risk factors in the development of breast cancer has
to do with the conversion of the estrogen hormone estradiol
into the estrogen compounds 2-hydroxyestrone and 16-alphahydroxyestrone.
Specifically, research suggests that conversion
into 2-hydroxyestrone is associated with a reduced risk of breast
cancer, while conversion into 16-alpha-hydroxyestrone is associated
with an increased risk. That’s where soy isoflavones come
into the picture.

The isoflavones in soybeans have been shown to have
anti-cancer effects. One particular isoflavone called genistein
(and possibly another called daidzein) has been proposed to
contribute an important part of the anti-cancer effect of soy
isoflavones. As a matter of fact, genistein in soy is considered
by some researchers to be responsible for the lower rate of
breast cancer observed in Asian women consuming soy. The
reason for this anti-cancer effect may be that soy isoflavones increase
the conversion of estradiol to 2-hydroxyestrone, but not
16-alpha-hydroxyestrone.6

The effect of genistein was tested in one study in five human
breast cancer cell lines. Genistein inhibited the growth of
each of these cancer cells7 Similar studies using genistein also
showed significant inhibitory effects on breast cancer cells. It
seems that genistein affects estrogen receptors in such a way
as to prevent breast cancer growth.8 This estrogen altering response
was also apparent in another study, which examined the
influence of total soy isoflavones in six premenopausal women
for one month. The result was that menstruation was delayed
and cholesterol concentrations decreased 9.6 percent.9

Despite these positive results, there seems to be conflicting
research about genistein and breast cancer. Some research suggests
that genistein is beneficial, while other research suggests
it may actually contribute toward the disease.10 In one study,
genistein given to rats early in their lives helped reduce the incidence
of mammary (breast) tumors.11 However, in research
where mice were implanted with human breast cancer cells, genistein
seemed to promote the growth of tumors in a similar
way to 16-alpha-hydroxyestrone.12 According to one researcher,
the issue really seems to be related to timing. Although there is
still no universal consensus among researchers on this issue, if
you want to play it safe and take a conservative position, then
follow this rule of thumb: if you don’t have breast cancer, the
use of soy isoflavones may help to prevent it. If you already have
breast cancer, soy isoflavones may promote its growth.13

Indole-3-Carbinol and DIM
Indole-3-carbinol is an extremely valuable compound found in
cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage,
collards, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, rapeseed,
and root vegetables such as turnips and rutabagas.14,15
While this compound has value for women and men, researchers
are interested in indole-3-carbinol for its role in helping
to promote healthy breast cell division and replication.
Indole-3-carbinol is one of several vegetable compounds that
might play such a valuable role in healthy cell division, reducing
the risk of breast cancer.16,17,18

As discussed previously, estradiol can be converted
into 2-hydroxyestrone (the “good estrogen metabolite”) and
16-alpha-hydroxyestrone (the “bad estrogen metabolite”). The
bad metabolite can promote cancer of the breast and cervix,
whereas the good metabolite does not do this. Indole-3-carbinol
gets into the act by promoting the conversion of estradiol
into the good metabolite, ultimately reducing the risk of breast
cancer.19,20,21,22,23,24 In addition, research suggests that indole-
3-carbinol has protective antioxidant properties.25,26

When indole-3-carbinol comes in contact with stomach
acid it is converted into active metabolites, including diindolylmethane
(DIM).27 Like indole-3-carbinol, researchers are interested
in DIM for its role in helping to promote healthy cell
division cell replication in breast cells, and the prevention of
breast cancer.28,29,39,31,32 Also like indole-3-carbinol, DIM helps
promote the conversion of estradiol into the good metabolite.33
Furthermore, DIM also helps promote a healthy turnover of
breast cells.34

Daily dietary intake of indole-3-carbinol is typically 20–
120 mg daily, while dietary intake of DIM is typically 2–24 mg
daily.35,36,37,38 However, research has shown that indole-3-carbinol
and DIM’s ability to help prevent breast cancer occurs at
daily levels of 200–300 mg and 100–200 mg, respectively. If
supplementing, therefore, it may make sense to utilize these
levels of indole-3-carbinol and DIM.

Laughter therapy
Laughter has positive, quantifiable effects on certain aspects of
health.39 Research has demonstrated that a number of physiological
changes take place when we laugh, including the release
of endorphins which suppress pain,40,41,42 increases in immune
cell production (e.g., NK cell activity,43 antibodies), a dramatic
reduction in the stress hormone cortisol, and a decrease in the
hormone epinephrine, which plays a role in hypertension and
heart failure.44 More specific to the topic of this article, researchers
tested the effectiveness of laughter therapy on levels of depression,
quality of life, resilience and immune responses in 37
breast cancer survivors (16 subjects in the experiment group,
21 in the control group) who underwent chemotherapy and radiation
therapy.45 They found that laughter therapy was effective
in increasing the quality of life and resilience in breast cancer
survivors.

Folic acid and alcohol
Moderate alcohol intake has been associated with increased
risk of breast cancer in women in several studies. Consequently,
it is significant that two different studies suggest that women
who regularly consume alcohol can decrease their risk of breast
cancer by increasing their intake of folic acid.46,47,48 In one study
of more than 88,000 nurses, women consuming at least one
alcoholic drink per day cut their risk of breast cancer in half with
a daily intake of at least 600 mcg folic acid, while those with an
intake of less that 300 mcg of folic acid did not have the same
reduction in risk.49

Dietary fiber
Research has suggested a protective effect of dietary fiber on
breast cancer risk. For example, risk of breast cancer in premenopausal
women was reduced with an increase in fiber intake
in a prospective cohort study in the UK.50 In Sweden, a
prospective cohort study demonstrated that postmenopausal
women with the fiber intakes averaging about 26 grams daily
had 40 percent lower risk of breast cancer than women with the
fiber intakes averaging about 13 grams daily;51 and those with
the highest fiber and lowest fat intakes had the very lowest risk
of breast cancer. A 13 percent lower risk of all forms of breast
cancer was seen with the highest intakes of dietary fiber (with
a mid-range of 26 grams day) compared to the lowest intakes
(midrange of 11 grams) in a U.S. prospective study of more than
185,000 postmenopausal women.52 In 2011 a meta-analysis
of ten prospective cohort studies found a modest, 11 percent
lower risk of breast cancer in women with the highest intakes
of dietary fiber.53 Smaller, short-term intervention trials in premenopausal
and postmenopausal women found that diets that
were low-fat and high-fiber (25–40 grams daily) increasing the
conversion of estradiol into the good estrogen metabolites.54,55

Conclusion
The prevention and treatment of breast cancer requires a multifaceted
approach. This may include the integrative use of conventional
and complementary therapies. The use of the complementary
medicine therapies discussed in this article may have
a place in a comprehensive, physician-supervised program of
breast cancer care.

Gene Bruno, MS, MHS

Gene Bruno is the Dean of Academics and Professor of Dietary Supplement Science for Huntington College of Health Sciences (a nationally accredited distance learning college offering diplomas and degrees in nutrition and other health science related subjects. Gene has two undergraduate Diplomas in Nutrition, a Bachelor’s in Nutrition, a Master’s in Nutrition, a Graduate Diploma in Herbal Medicine, and a Master’s in Herbal Medicine. As a 32 year veteran of the Dietary Supplement industry, Gene has educated and trained natural product retailers and health care professionals, has researched and formulated natural products for dozens of dietary supplement companies, and has written articles on nutrition, herbal medicine, nutraceuticals and integrative health issues for trade, consumer magazines, and peer-reviewed publications. Gene's latest book, A Guide to Complimentary Treatments for Diabetes, is available on Amazon.com, and other fine retailers.

Follow Us

The products and the claims made about specific products on or through this site have not been evaluated by The Wellness Imperative People or the United States Food and Drug Administration and are not approved to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. The information provided on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for advice from your physician or other health care professional or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging. You should not use the information on this site for diagnosis or treatment of any health problem or for prescription of any medication or other treatment. You should consult with a healthcare professional before starting any diet, exercise or supplementation program, before taking any medication, or if you have or suspect you might have a health problem.